The plaintiff was a medical student at New York Medical College. She was
a passenger in a motor vehicle owned and operated by her friend which
was rear ended at the intersection of Scott Road and Plank Road in the
City of Waterbury. The defendant, from Waterbury, told the investigating
police officer that her shoe slipped off causing her to lose control of
her motor vehicle. In essence, the defendant was negligent in that she
failed to keep her motor vehicle under proper control. The impact was
a low speed impact with modest crush damage.

The plaintiff suffered cervical strain, mild shoulder bursitis and a transient
aggravation of a pre existing migraine headach disorder. Treatment consisted
of chiropractic care, an orthopedic exam of the shoulder and a neurological
exam with a Danbury neurologist. The plaintiff was assigned a seven percent
impairment of the cervical spine under the 5th Edition of the AMA Guide.The
impairment rating was performed by the plaintiff's chiropractic physician.
There was no wage loss claimed but the personal injuries suffered by the
plaintiff med student interfered with her medical school studies.

The defendant was insured by State Farm Insurance Company. State Farm Insurance
Company tendered full policy limits of $25,000.00 upon receipt of the
demand package sent by The Rotatori Law Firm. Attorney Peter Rotatori,
III then made an underinsured motorist claim against Geico. Geico indemnified
the owner/operator of the motor vehicle that the plaintiff was in as a
passenger at the time of the rear end collision. The underinsured motorist
carrier, Geico, then paid an additional $28,000.00. The total aggregate
settlement was
$58,000.00. There was no surgery undertaken on behalf of the injured plaintiff.

Under
Connecticut underinsured motorist law, the plaintiff must exhaust all available owner/operator coverage against
the defendant tortfeasor wrongdoer before he or she has a viable underinsured
motorist claim. Under Connecticut statutory law, as reflected in all standard
Connecticut underinsured motorist policy language, the hosting vehicle
has the responsibility of insuring the primary underinsured motorist coverage
where that coverage exceeds the coverage available to the defendant tortfeasor.

The information on this website is for general information purposes only.
Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual
case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt
or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.